Dortmund sack Nuri Sahin in extremely awkward way with ex-Man Utd manager tipped to replace him

Borussia Dortmund have sacked head coach Nuri Sahin in incredibly awkward fashion and have been tipped with replacing him with a former Manchester United manager.

Sahin has been under pressure after a poor run of results and his fate was sealed on Tuesday night following a 2-1 Champions League defeat to Bologna.

Sehrou Guirassy put Dortmund 1-0 up with a 15th minute penalty before the hosts turned it around with goals in quick succession from Thijs Dallinga and Samuel Iling-Junior in the second half.

The defeat was a fourth in succession for last season's Champions League finalists and Sahin was relieved of his duties afterwards.

"We value Nuri Sahin and his work very much," Dortmund sporting director Lars Ricken said in a statement where the club announced the decision.

"We hoped for a long-term collaboration and until the end we had hoped that we could achieve a sporting turnaround together.

"After four defeats in a row, due to only one win in the last nine games and currently tenth in the Bundesliga table, we have unfortunately lost faith in being able to achieve our sporting goals in the current constellation. This decision hurts me personally, but it was unavoidable after the game in Bologna."

Nuri Sahin was sacked after four defeats on the trot. Image: Getty

Sahin replaced Edin Terzic in June and leaves the club in tenth place in the Bundesliga, seven points off fourth-placed VFB Stuttgart.

"Unfortunately, we have not managed to live up to Borussia Dortmund's sporting ambitions this season," Sahin said. "I wish this special club all the best."

According to Patrick Berger of Sky Germany, Sahin and the Dortmund team were told of the decision in the hotel in Bologna after the loss.

Prior to Sahin being given the boot, it was reported by journalist Florian Plettenberg that Erik ten Hag is among one of the names Dortmund have in mind.

Ten Hag was in the stands at Signal Iduna Park for the 3-2 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen and has a close relationship with Dortmund advisor Matthias Sammer.

Erik ten Hag is one of the names in contention for the Borussia Dortmund. Image: Getty

He was sacked by United in October and would need to discuss settling his severance package with his former employers if he was to make a swift return to management.